UV completes historical comeback from 0-2 deficit to dethrone SWU in Cesafi hoop

Cebu’s green machine is back on top again.

This after the University of the Visayas (UV) Green Lancers reclaimed the throne and won their 10th title after beating arch-nemesis Southwestern University (SWU) Cobras, 64-62, in the deciding Game Five of their epic best-of-five championship series in the Cesafi finals yesterday at the jampacked Cebu Coliseum.

In what would be considered to be the strangest, longest, and inarguably the most exciting series finale in Cebu basketball history, it was last year’s MVP Wowie Escosio who dealt the final blow to the Cobras as his put-back off a miss by import Mike Nzuesseu with 0.7 of a second left lifted the Green Lancers to the championship victory and banished the bitter memories of their title loss to these very same Cobras last season.

The win by the Lancers was one for the record books as they became the first team in Cebu’s collegiate basketball history to come back from a 0-2 deficit and hoist the crown they last won in 2009.

Largely criticized for winning the MVP trophy last year in spite of his abysmal free-throw shooting clip, the 6-foot-4 Escosio rose to the occasion as he scored UV’s last 11 points to finish with 16 points and five rebounds.

Tied at 62-all with 7.2 seconds left in the game, Nzuesseu drove hard down the lane but missed his lay-up attempt. Escosio was there to snatch the offensive rebound and put it back in for a 64-62 count.

SWU had one last shot but Mark Jayven Tallo’s last ditch heave was off the mark as time expired, signaling the start of UV’s championship celebration.

Mythical Five guard John Abad led the Lancers with 18 points, seven rebounds and four assists while Nzuesseu finished with 11 markers.

“We just wanted to take it one game at a time,” UV head coach Felix Belano said. “I kept on telling my players that a true warrior battles until his last breath. Even when we were down 0-2, I just wanted the team to improve in every game.”

ONE-HOUR LULL

The stirring finale nearly got shelved as the shotclock and the scoreboard on UV’s side of the floor malfunctioned in the first period. The Lancers initially refused to play until it was fixed but gave in to the concession that it will be repaired at halftime.

However, things turned from bad to worse when both scoreboards and shot clocks conked out, leading Cebu City Mayor Mike Rama to announce that if it was not fixed in time, the game would have to be postponed.

Fortunately for the raucous crowd, both UV and SWU agreed to continue the game using a whiteboard for a scoreboard and the shotclock being announced periodically by the coliseum barker.

After a lull of more than an hour, the Lancers came out firing and went on a 14-2 run sparked by Abad and Steve Akomo that opened a 42-31 lead.

SWU showed its championship pedigree by rallying to tie the game at 60-all after a three-pointer by Tallo. Escosio briefly put the Lancers in front with a tip-in but the Cobras tied it at 62-all off a putback by Bernie Bregondo with 1:05 left. SWU had two chances to take the lead but Tallo missed on a three-pointer while Sanjo bungled a lay-up leading to Escosio’s heroic save.

Sanjo led SWU with 21 points and 15 boards while Tallo had 12 but tallied just one dime.